Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering

Course Overview

Why take this course?

The Engineering Council defines mechanical and manufacturing engineers as being exponents of today’s technology through creativity and innovation.

If you want to study a course where you’ll be designing, developing, manufacturing, installing, and operating this course could be ideal. This course is also available as a two or three year top-up degree, by distance learning.

What will I experience?

On this course you can:

Create your own designs in our manufacturing workshops

Put learning into practice by doing a paid work placement, either in the UK or overseas

Be involved in Formula Student

What opportunities might it lead to?

This course is accredited by the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) and the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) for academic exemption leading to eventual Chartered Engineer (CEng) status with further study. It puts you in an excellent position to start a career as a professional engineer.

Here are some routes our graduates have pursued:

design

research and development

product manufacture

project management

I enjoyed my course, particularly the project based learning, which allowed practical work to be carried out alongside the theory.

Structure & Teaching

Year one

You will begin the course with the foundations of engineering science and engineering design, including some computer-aided design. Also get hands-on experience with the chance to manufacture a product of your own design.

Core units in this year include:

Communication and Engineering Technology Appreciation

Electrical and Electronic Principles

Introduction to Design

Mathematical Principles

Mechanical Engineering Principles

Introduction to Solid Mechanics and Dynamics

Year two

Broaden your knowledge gained in the first year. There will be a focus on real systems such as instrumentation and control and you’ll integrate your design, CAE and manufacturing knowledge by studying product modelling for manufacture.

Core units in this year include:

Computer Aided Engineering and Product Manufacture

Energy Engineering

Engineering Design

Materials and Manufacture (ENG)

Solid Mechanics and Dynamics

Options to choose from in this year include:

Engineering Mathematics, Instrumentation and Control

Engineering Programming

Year three*

In your final year you will cover solid materials, manufacturing systems and CAE (product realisation). There is also a range of topics for you to tailor your studies as well as an individual project, working on your own design, make and test activity.

Core units in this year include:

Computer Aided Engineering (Product Realisation)

Design and Sustainable Development

Individual Project

Integrated Engineering Group Business Project

Manufacturing Systems

*This course is also available as a 4-year sandwich (work placement)

Teaching and Assessment

You will be taught through a mixture of lectures, seminars, tutorials (personal and academic), laboratory and project work, CAE system activity and open access study. The course has a strong practical emphasis and we pride ourselves on working at the leading-edge of technology and learning practices.

How are you assessed?

A range of assessment methods encourages a deeper understanding of engineering and allows you to develop your skills. Here’s how we assess your work:

written examinations

coursework

practical tests

project work

presentations

Tutor's view

Dr Ivan PopovManufacturing Engineering

We will equip you with the knowledge and skills you need to create effective and innovative products for suitable and profitable manufacture. Starting at the drawing board, we will take you through modern workshop activities, mastering mechanical engineering technology and science involving state-of-the-art CAD/CAM systems and rapid manufacture facilities.

Facilities & Features

Laboratories

Formula Student

Design, construct and test a competitive race car

Maths Café

The Maths Café - drop in any time and get one-to-one help

University Library

Our library offers a wealth of information

Laboratories

We offer you a range of labs such as the Analogue Electronics and Control Engineering Laboratory as well as the Telecommunications and Signal Processing Laboratory to name a few. From Digital Signal Processing (DSP) kits to walking robots, all are well-equipped with industry-standard experimental and computational facilities.

Formula Student

Design, construct and test a competitive race car. Prizes to be won and lots of great networking opportunities as you race on the famous Silverstone circuit in competition with 3,000 students from all over the world.

Maths Café

Drop in any time and get one-to-one help with that tricky maths or stats problem. With handouts on key topics to take away and computer aided learning packages, we can get the problem solved and help you improve your numeracy skills.

University Library

Modern, comfortable and a great learning environment, our library offers a wealth of information including 400,000 books, DVDs, maps and thousands of online ejournals and newspapers. Many electronic resources are available anywhere, 24/7 and our friendly staff are always on hand to help.

Budgeting for your studies

There are extra costs associated with studying, which you will need to consider when planning your expenditure.

Recommended texts:
If you wish to purchase recommended texts, rather than borrow from the University Library, the average price is £50-£60. You may be studying up to 6 units a year, each with a standard recommended text.

General costs:
We recommend that you budget £75 a year for costs of photocopying, memory sticks, DVDs and CDs, printing charges, binding and specialist printing.

Final year project:
If your final year includes a major project, there could be cost for transport or accommodation related to your research activities. The amount will depend on the project you choose to develop.

Careers & Opportunities

Career prospects

Where next?

This course is accredited by the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), leading to Chartered Engineer (CEng) status – it’s a great first step to becoming a professional engineer. Not only does it meet the requirements of the major engineering graduate programmes, you’ll also have the effective interpersonal skills needed to enter technical and commercial management in this valuable field.

It is generally accepted that there is a current shortage of engineers and our courses are aimed at educating engineers for a multitude of different careers in engineering and technology. You could work for a large company, in the Armed Forces or in one of the many small companies within this sector. You could even start your own specialist company.

Roles our graduates have taken on include:

manufacturing engineer

product design engineer

aerospace engineer

application engineer

Work experience

Employment boosting opportunities

Taking a placement year in industry could be one of the best decisions you make as more often than not, it leads to further opportunities after graduation. SPEC, our Student Placement and Employability Centre, not only helps you to arrange your placement but acts as a source of information and guidance throughout the recruitment process and beyond. We help on anything and everything related to employability skills as well as assisting you in gaining other types of work experience.

Types of placement roles relevant to this course include:

Research and Development Engineer

Trainee Project Engineer

AutoCAD Drawing Assistant

Here are some examples of the companies our students have secured placements with:

GE

Mercedes

Frictec

Career planning

To make sure you take the right steps on your career path, we’re here to give you help, support and advice throughout your study. Even after you’ve graduated, we continue to give you support for up to five years.

Employers tell us that they want graduates to be able to demonstrate certain skills when they come out of university. Our courses take account of this. We make sure we prepare you for employment through work-related learning, projects, placements and working in simulated environments that are designed to prepare you for the working world.